There exist several types of financial markets in which securities, commodities, and other negotiable instruments are traded. An auction market, such as a stock exchange, is one such financial market. In an auction market, buyers and sellers congregate on the exchange floor and announce their respective bid (offered to buy) and ask (price acceptable to sell) prices. A trade in any particular security will occur at no more than the highest price a buyer is willing to pay and at no less than the lowest price a seller is willing to accept.
Among the players on the floor of an exchange are specialist and floor brokers. Specialist call out the best bid and ask prices received from the various brokers, ensures that trades are posted, facilitate trades, and acts to ensure liquidity. Floor broker roams the trading floor and acts as an agent to transacts orders on behalf of investors (buyers and sellers).
A typical transaction originates when an order is placed with an off-the-floor-trading desk (a.k.a. a xe2x80x9ctrading boothxe2x80x9d) to buy or sell a particular security. The trading desk may then convey the order to a exchange clerk who notes the parameters of the order including whether the order is a buy or sell order, the symbol of the security, the quantity, the price, any special conditions associated with the order, and the time that the order is placed. The clerk then delivers the order to the floor broker for execution. Traditionally, the orders are transcribed onto order slips that are delivered to the floor brokers by pages or runners. The floor broker then executes the order, notes the executed order on a slip of paper, and subsequently returns the notated slip of paper to the clerk via a runner.
In addition to buy and sell orders, investors may request a xe2x80x9clookxe2x80x9d from the floor of the exchange. In response to a xe2x80x9clookxe2x80x9d request, a broker notes his or her observations with respect to what is happening in the market for a particular security. The xe2x80x9clookxe2x80x9d information noted by the broker may vary depending on the particular broker and what he or she has observed. For example, xe2x80x9clookxe2x80x9d information may include: recent buyer and seller identities, trade sizes and prices, an appraisal of market interest, the trader""s opinion, and any other information that the trader can or may wish to provide.
A number of problems exist with the use of runners to deliver trade orders, confirmations, and other information. These problems can include trade execution delays resulting from illegibly transcribed orders, dropped slips, or delayed delivery. Other problems include an inability to easily maintain a clear audit trail. To address these problems, and/or to provide other advantages, auction markets are currently exploring whether networked hand-held computers can be used to exchange information with floor traders. If such computers are to function effectively, they must be easy to operate and must quickly convey needed information. Consequently, improved hand-held computer systems are desired.
A handheld trading computer (the xe2x80x9chandheld trading computerxe2x80x9d) can be used by a broker to exchange trading orders and information with an off-floor server over a wireless computer network. The handheld trading computer can include an interface modeled on traditional paper-based trading forms. The interface may represented data using graphically rendered xe2x80x9cpagesxe2x80x9d that can display and receive figures, drawings, symbols, and arbitrary marks. The xe2x80x9cpagesxe2x80x9d may also include input areas in which a user can write using xe2x80x9cdigital ink.xe2x80x9d Digital ink writings may be bit-mapped images containing arbitrary annotations, drawings, and other marks formed using an input stylus. The digitally rendered pages can be stacked such that underlying pages are partially displayed, thereby allowing direct selection of exposed pages without requiring menu navigation. Pages may also contain graphically rendered objects that a user can interact with using a stylus.
In general, in one aspect, the invention features a computer implemented method for interacting with a user of a trading computer. The method includes forming a number of ticker pages, simultaneously displaying ticker page selection elements, and displaying one of the ticker pages based on an input identifying one of the page selection elements. Each ticker page includes trade order information for a negotiable item (such as a stock or other equity) and each ticker page selection element is associated with one of the ticker pages.
Implementations may include one or more of the following features. The ticker pages may be displayed on a display screen that has multiple display areas, each of which is associated with a digitizer input location. Each ticker page selection elements may be displayed as a page tab at a different screen area. Ticker selection elements can be identified based on digitizer inputs locations. Ticker pages may include one or more simultaneously displayed order objects that each represent a buy or sell order and includes price and order size information. The size information may be a xe2x80x9cleavesxe2x80x9d size value identifying an unfilled portion of the order. Buy and sell order objects may use different display characteristics (e.g., different font, color, shade, and shape). Multiple order objects can be selected and aggregated price and/or size information for the multiple selected order objects can be displayed. Order objects may be modified based on inputs of trade execution data. Modifying an order object may include reducing the leaves size value. If multiple order objects are selected when trade execution data is input, the multiple order objects may each be modified based on the trade execution data (for example, in a sale, the leaves value of each of the selected order objects may be reduced by an apportioned amount). A ticker page may include a nested order transaction page that includes transaction data input fields. Trade execution data may be input on order transaction pages. Ticker pages may include separate buy and sell order transaction pages and data may be copied between transaction pages by dragging from a data item to be copied to the receiving transaction page.
In general, in another aspect, the invention features a trading computer. The trading computer includes a screen that can operate as both an output display and an input digitizer. The trading computer also includes a processor coupled to the screen and to a memory. The memory includes instructions for causing the processor to form and display ticker pages on the screen. Each ticker page includes trade order information for a different negotiable item. A currently displayed ticker page may be determined based on a selection of a ticker page selection elements. The ticker page selection elements may be rendered as page tabs that are displayed at a different output display location. The computer memory also may include additional instructions for implementing other methods of the invention.
Implementations may include one or more of the following advantages. A broker can access and input trading order information using an interface that is easy to navigate and that provides for a variety of trading operations. The interface can flexibly provide information for a variety of items being traded. Other features, objects, and advantages of the invention will be apparent from the description, drawings, and claims that follow.